Technical Specifications
Year: 2003
Director: Dominique de Rivaz
Director of Photography: Ciro Cappellari
Distribution: Filmcoopi Zürich AG, Pegasos Film Distribution
Runtime: 99’
Language: German
Production: CAB Productions SA, Pandora Filmproduktion, Twenty Twenty Vision, RTS Radio Télévision Suisse, WDR – Westdeutscher Rundfunk Köln, ARTE G.E.I.E.
Distribution of the Restored Version: Cinémathèque suisse
Restoration Information
Restoration: Cinémathèque suisse
4K Image Digitisation-Image Restoration: Cinegrell GmbH
Colour Grading: Color Grade
Sound Digitisation and Restoration: Masé Studios
Subtitles in French, English, and Italian: Andromeda Film AG
Synopsis
Winner of the 2004 Swiss Film Award, Dominique de Rivaz’s feature film immerses the viewer in the life of Johann Sebastian Bach and his meeting with King Frederick II of Prussia in May 1747. The viewer is transported to Potsdam in a horse-drawn carriage on a hot humid day, just as Bach’s first grandchild is about to be christened. The reputation of the “great Bach” precedes him and leads him straight to the king’s palace. The instrumental piece “The Musical Offering”, composed for the occasion by the master himself, forms the film’s common thread. The music is omnipresent in the relationships that the Bach family forge with the king and his entourage.
Regarding the Film's Restoration
The 4K digitisation was carried out on the 35mm internegative image. Based on a copy deposited at the Cinémathèque suisse in 2005, the colour grading was supervised by Dominique de Rivaz. The sound was digitised using the MOD audio file. All of the original elements, deposited by CAB Productions in 2012, are conserved by the Cinémathèque suisse.